It’s the summer time and while much of the attention has been focused on last week’s NBA Draft and the insanity that has been free agency, there are a number of other guys in the League who are just trying to get some run in to take their games to new heights. While pro-ams aren’t quite what they once were a decade ago and private, more controlled runs are the new fad, the city of Atlanta is still holding it down with the AEBL. Sunday’s epic battle between budding star Jaylen Brown and Sixth Man of the Year Lou Williams reaffirmed that.
Finishing with a cool 50 points, it was Lou Will’s team that came away with the W. He drilled a number of deep threes from well beyond the NBA line, showed off his deadly pull-up, and had a number of explosive drives to the rack that made you remember that he’s still got some bounce left at 31-years old. He also dropped a number of dimes to ex-Hawks high flyer Josh Smith, who was out of the League this past season, but is looking to land on roster in ’18 as a new-age forward.
The Celtics’ emerging star Brown dropped 30 points himself in the loss and showed why there is so much optimism around him as one of the League’s best young two-way players. He pulled his best Shep impersonation from Above The Rim, putting on his jersey right over his clothes and going to work on the hardwood. JB had countless punishing dunks, slashed to the rim at will, and even strapped up to play some D. He teamed with Lorenzo Brown, who was fresh off of winning the G League MVP and showed that he owns a handle that most 6-5 point guards could only dream of.
Peep the highlights above, courtesy of Take Flight Hoops.
The summer is just beginning for the AEBL, though. Now in its sixth season, the league has served as a platform for guys such as Brown, Collin Sexton, and Wendell Carter to get a run in against NBA players before their official debuts. Kyrie Irving came to team with Lou Williams to win the ‘chip last year, leaving the imagination open as to which stars will be making the journey to take part in the AEBL playoffs when they roll around later this summer.
